Hey there guys,

I have a question regarding the U.S. uniform.
I have been to the states just recently and at a train station I saw two soldiers in their cammos. The american flag patch on their shoulder was upside down. I didn't want to make an ass out of myself by asking them why they wear it upside down,... ever since I saw them though, I wanted to know why.

Can anyone tell me if this means something in particular, or did they simply just put it on the wrong way? I hope I am not making an ass out of myself asking,...

If so, I am very sorry to have brung it up,... I am just an Austrian who doesn't know,...

Thx in advance!

Heli

They're held on with Velcro, aren't they? Ours are too (in Canada) and I occasionally turn a friends name or ranks upside down... never the flag, though! I'm a jerk, but not a disrespectful one
The flag flies rearward on their shoulders, but the fellows that you saw may have been victims of a jerky co-worker.

Are you sure you mean upside down and not "backward"? The flags we wear are reverse patterned. The blue field always goes forward. Think of the sleeve as a flag pole. When worn on the right side, the flag looks backwards compared to the normal direction of the flag.